The output beam of our lidar system clearly visible on this
slightly moved photo made in the Marine
Station of Gdansk University
on Hel Peninsula in 1993 during marine aerosol measurements.

History of the Lidar Laboratory

Lidar Laboratory in Institute of Oceanology PAS exists since January 1993.
However the history of the lidar group in IO PAS is longer. It was created
in the early 1980s by Prof. Andrzej Zielinski. In 1992 it bought the lidar
system (FLS-12) we have been since using. The purchase was possible thanks
to Committee for Scientific Research
(KBN) research grant.
In years 1993-2000
Dr. Jacek Piskozub was the leader of the laboratory, followed in 2001 by Asoc. Prof. Tadeusz Krol.
In the last 8 years we have participated in more than 20 research cruises on R/V Oceania
and more than 30 shore experiments (including 4 international, one in Duck, North Carolina).
A three year research grant for lidar study of sea-surface oil
pollution (1996-1998) resulted in purchasing a new lidar system FLS-UV for measuring thickness
of the oil films on the surface using the attenuation of water Raman scattering.

The lidar is placed on an old-but-faithful East-German Robur truck (scrapped in 1998)
during a BAEX experiment
in Lubiatowo on the Polish stretch of the southern Baltic shore.
The simple mirror device attached to the truck enables vertical sounding
of the atmosphere. Horizonthal and sloped profiles are made by tilting the
lidar device itself.

The lidar mirror for chlorophyll concentration measurements.
In background one of the oil drilling platforms and a tanker,
north from Rozewie in the Polish economic zone. This site has been
selected for future lidar oil-film measurements as a part of a new project
we will soon start working on.

Our Output

Here is an example of aerosol concentration map. The lidar measurements
were done in Lubiatowo, Poland during a BAEX-2 international experiment.

An interesting example of the field of aerosol concentration
calculated from our measurements is
shown above. The measurements were done with the lidar
standing 60 m from the shore. The wind blew with 2 m/s velocity from
the land. The dropping out of land aerosol can be clearly traced. An
aerosol plume is visible about 100 m over the sea. The increasing values
over 450 m from lidar are caused by due marine aerosol generation.